Anti-tip device and cabinet

ABSTRACT

The invention relates to an anti-tip device, especially for information technology cabinets, comprising a support rail having a root area for support on a floor surface. Said support rail has a displacement section which can be displaced along a guide rail, the support rail being adjustable between a support position, in which the support rail is hooked out at an angle in relation to the guide rail, and a withdrawal position, in which the support rail is swiveled in towards the guide rail, and the support rail being fixable in the support position.

The invention relates to an anti-tip device, especially for information technology cabinets, having a support rail which comprises a foot area for support on a floor surface.

The invention further relates to a cabinet.

Items of electronic equipment such as servers are frequently arranged in cabinets, so-called server cabinets. These server cabinets serve in particular to house a multitude of servers or other electronic equipment in a space-saving way. Due to the frequently limited installation area for such cabinets the equipment is mostly arranged in a vertical arrangement in the cabinets.

In order to protect the equipment the cabinets mostly have a closed outer contour with a front-side door. The equipment is usually arranged in the manner of drawers or pull-out areas and can be pulled out horizontally for better access. The electronic equipment is hereby moved out of the outer contour of the cabinet, whereby the centre of gravity of the cabinet moves. In case of heavy equipment or several drawers being pulled out at the same time, there is a risk of the centre of gravity moving from the installation area of the cabinet and the cabinet tipping forwards.

In order to prevent such tipping a multitude of devices are known. It is known for example that support elements to be fixed manually on the cabinet can be provided which are to be mounted on the cabinet before pulling out a drawer.

Furthermore it is known that the base area of the cabinet can be enlarged through elements that can be pulled out horizontally.

Such an anti-tip mechanism follows for example from U.S. Pat. No. 6,857,711 B1. When the door of the cabinet is opened a stabilisation element is moved horizontally out of a bottom section of the cabinet and thus increases the standing security of the cabinet.

A further anti-tip mechanism is known from US 2004/0174105 A1. With this security mechanism, transverse arms with auxiliary feet are folded out about a vertical axis in the bottom area of the cabinet in order to increase the standing security.

U.S. Pat. No. 4,215,839 discloses a folding tripod for a camera or similar equipment with a central column and three legs connected thereto. The legs include a slot, in which an end of a connecting arm is guided displaceably. The other end of the connecting arm is pivotably attached to a lower region of the central column.

DE 299 01 073 U1 describes an anti-tip device for a structure at risk of tipping, in particular a cabinet for receiving devices for data communication and telecommunication. The anti-tip device consists of a pedestal which is formed to be inclined towards the installation plane both on the front side and also on the sides.

U.S. Pat. No. 7,185,872 B2 discloses a device for fixing an item of equipment on a support structure such as for example a wall. The device comprises support elements which are pivotably arranged on the device to be supported and comprise openings so that the support elements can be fixed to the support structure.

The object of the invention is to create an anti-tip device and a cabinet with an anti-tip device, wherein the anti-tip device is easy to handle and can be arranged in a space-saving way.

The object is achieved according to the invention through an anti-tip device having the features of claim 1. The object is further achieved through a cabinet having the features of claim 11. Preferred embodiments are indicated in the respective dependent claims.

It is provided in the inventive anti-tip device that the support rail comprises a displacement area which can be displaced along a guide rail, that the support rail can be adjusted between a support position, in which the support rail is moved out at an angle to the guide rail, and a withdrawn position, in which the support rail is pivoted in towards the guide rail, and that the support rail can be fixed in the support position.

The cabinet is characterised according to the invention in that such an anti-tip device is arranged thereon.

Cabinets can be understood below to mean in particular installations for receiving electronic parts and/or components such as servers, network, telecommunications and/or data processing components as well as components for energy conversion or distribution. A cabinet according to the meaning of the invention can be a housing of any size. Cabinets for receiving the abovementioned components are frequently described as server cabinets, server racks, 19″ racks, network cabinets or telecommunications cabinets.

A core idea of the invention can be seen in that the support rail is not—as in the prior art—merely pivoted outwards but instead can be linearly displaced in addition to the pivoting outwards. Through the combination of the pivot movement and translatory movement the anti-tip device can be positioned particularly advantageously on a cabinet.

The displacement area of the support rail is preferably arranged at an end of the support rail lying opposite the foot area of the rail. A guide structure is formed on the guide rail, which guide structure cooperates with the guide area in such a way that guiding of the support rail along the guide rail is achieved.

The displaceability of the support rail allows in particular the support rail to be arranged on a side area of a cabinet and pivoted out about a horizontal axis. It is not thereby necessary to lengthen the support rail for contact with the floor surface, for example by providing a telescopically extending support rail. Instead, contact with the floor surface is essentially achieved by displacement of the support rail along the guide rail. In comparison with known anti-tip devices the area of use of the anti-tip device is thus considerably extended and handling is improved.

The fixing of the support rail in the support position can be achieved in particular in that the support rail is secured or fixed to the guide rail and/or the cabinet, so that the support rail is held in a defined position relative to the guide rail and/or to the cabinet.

A particularly compact anti-tip device is achieved in that the support rail, in particular its displacement area, is displaceably mounted in the guide rail. For this purpose the guide rail has a hollow form for receiving the displacement area.

A further preferred embodiment of the anti-tip device is characterised in that the support rail is received in the withdrawn position in the guide rail. The guide rail comprises for this purpose preferably a receiving area which is at least the length of the support rail. The support rail can be pivoted into the guide rail and is then at least partially, preferably completely, integrated into the outer contour of the guide rail. The anti-tip device thus has relatively compact dimensions in the withdrawn position.

A particularly reliable anti-tip device is achieved in that the displacement area of the support rail comprises a detent device for fixing the support rail to the guide rail. The detent device can in particular be provided so as to fix the support rail in the support position and/or the withdrawn position. The detent device can for example comprise a pin, bolt or stop element.

According to a further advantageous embodiment of the invention the displacement area comprises a sliding block which is connected to the support rail and the sliding block is displaceably guided on the guide rail. Through the sliding block on the one hand the displaceability of the support rail on the guide rail is achieved. On the other hand the sliding block serves as a mount for the support rail.

It is preferable if by means of the detent device the sliding block can be fixed to the guide rail. In addition to the abovementioned functions of the sliding block there is thus a further function, namely the locking of the support rail on the guide rail. The detent device can comprises a pin, bolt or stop element for fixing the sliding block.

The stability of the anti-tip device is increased according to a preferred embodiment in that a support strut is provided which is hinged to the guide rail and to the support rail. The support strut constitutes, besides the displacement area of the support rail/the sliding block, a further connection between the support rail and guide rail. Through the support strut the degree of freedom of the support rail is reduced. Upon fixing the displacement area relative to the guide rail, through the support strut the orientation of the support rail in relation to the guide rail is additionally defined and fixed. A stable, fixed support position of the support rail is hereby achieved. A preferred support position is given in that an area of the guide rail, the support strut and an area of the support rail form a triangle.

The support strut is preferably hinged to the support rail approximately centrally between the foot area and the displacement area. A particularly stable anti-tip device is achieved through this geometric design.

It is furthermore preferable if the support strut is orientated in the support position approximately at a right angle to the guide rail. This also brings about a high stability of the anti-tip device.

A particularly compact anti-tip device is achieved if the length of the support strut corresponds approximately to the length of the guide rail so that the support rail can be received in the withdrawn position in the guide rail.

The support rail and the support strut can be folded particularly simply into the guide rail if the guide rail comprises a guide area and a receiving area, the support rail is guided displaceably in the guide area and if the receiving area is formed to receive the support strut. The guide area is thereby designed so that a linear guiding of the support rail is produced. The receiving area is formed so that the support strut can be integrated into the outer dimensions of the guide rail. In addition the guide area and the receiving area are designed so that, besides the function of guiding the support rail/receiving the support strut, the receiving of the support rail is also possible. The support rail can thus be folded both into the guide area and into the receiving area of the guide rail.

It is advantageous in this connection for the guide area to have an essentially C-shaped cross-section and for the receiving area to have an essentially U-shaped cross-section. Through the C-shaped cross-section good guidance is facilitated, whereby the displacement area of the support rail/the sliding block is enclosed by the C-shaped structure. The U-shaped cross-section of the receiving area offers space for receiving the support strut.

In the inventive cabinet it is particularly preferable for the guide rail to be arranged on a vertical beam, in particular on the front side, of the cabinet. In comparison with the prior art, wherein the anti-tip device is provided in a floor area of the cabinet, considerable space-saving is hereby achieved. The arrangement of the anti-tip device, in particular the guide rail, on vertical beams of the cabinet does not take up any additional space which would otherwise be available for further electronic components. In particular the whole vertical height of the cabinet as far as the floor is available for electronic components.

The anti-tip device can be arranged in a particularly compact way if the guide rail is arranged in a depression of a vertical beam of the cabinet. The depression can be formed as a groove-like depression or as a recess in a corner area of the cabinet, in particular of a vertical beam.

In order to increase the stability of the cabinet it is advantageous if at least two anti-tip devices are provided on a cabinet. These are preferably located on two front-side vertical beams of the cabinet.

The invention is described in greater detail below by reference to example embodiments which are illustrated in the attached drawings in which:

FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of a cabinet with an inventive anti-tip device;

FIG. 2 an enlarged view of the region X of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 a side view of the cabinet of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 a front view of the cabinet of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 a cross-sectional view along A-A of FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 an embodiment of an inventive anti-tip device in a perspective view;

FIG. 7 a cross-sectional view of a guide area of the guide rail;

FIG. 8 a cross-sectional view of a receiving area of the guide rail;

FIG. 9 a partially cut side view of an inventive anti-tip device;

FIG. 10 an enlarged view of the region Y of the anti-tip device of FIG. 5;

FIG. 11 a a front view of a guide rail;

FIG. 11 b a side view of a first side plate of a guide rail; and

FIG. 11 c a side view of a second side plate of a guide rail.

FIG. 1 shows a housing 50 of a server cabinet with two inventive anti-tip devices 1. The housing 50 is hereby shown without side walls. The illustration of front and rear doors has also been omitted. The housing 50 comprises an upper side 51 and a lower side 52, between which two front-side vertical beams 53 and two rear-side vertical beams 54 extend. An anti-tip device 1 is arranged on each of the front-side vertical beams 53.

Each anti-tip device 1 comprises a guide rail 10, a support rail 20 and two support struts 30. The guide rail 10 has a length which is smaller than the height of the housing 50. In order to receive the guide rails 10 a groove/recess 56 extending longitudinally along the vertical beams 53 is formed on the front-side vertical beams 53 of the housing 50. The guide rails 10 are fixed in the grooves/recesses 56.

In order to close the housing 50 a door can be provided on a front side thereof. In order to hang the door the housing 50 comprises on one of the front-side vertical beams 53 door hanging elements 58 with hinge bolts. The door hanging elements 58 are arranged on an outer side of the vertical beam beside the groove/recesses 56. Upon closing the door the groove 56 is covered by the door.

In order to provide the anti-tip protection the anti-tip device 1 can be conveyed from a withdrawn position, in which the support rail 20 and the support struts 30 are arranged essentially vertically, into a support position, in which the support rail is moved out at an angle to the guide rail 10. If a door is provided on the housing 50 it can be necessary for the door to be opened in order to reach the support position.

An area designated X in FIG. 1 is shown enlarged in FIG. 2. The support rail 20 comprises an adjusting foot 22, of which the support surface is inclined in relation to a longitudinal axis of the support rail 20 for the purpose of support on a floor surface. In order to facilitate compensation for an uneven floor surface the adjusting foot 22 is received adjustably in the support rail 20. For this purpose the support rail 20 comprises an inner thread, into which the adjusting foot 22 can be screwed with a corresponding outer thread. Through the adjusting foot the anti-tip security 1 can be adjusted, that is to say after the fixing of the support rail 20 on the guide rail 10 the anti-tip security 1 can be tensioned in order to thus minimise the tip behaviour of the cabinet and to compensate for different floor conditions.

At an end lying opposite the adjustable foot 22 a sliding block 40 is provided. The sliding block 40 serves on the one hand for mounting and guiding the support rail 20 in the guide rail 10 and on the other hand to lock the support rail 20 on the guide rail 10.

FIG. 3 shows a side view of the housing 50 with an anti-tip device 1 in a support position. The support rail 20 is pulled out at an angle of approximately 45° in relation to the vertical. The support struts 30 are orientated essentially horizontally in the support position.

FIG. 4 shows a front view of the housing 50. An anti-tip device 1 is arranged on each of the two vertical beams 53. The anti-tip devices 1 are respectively provided in a lower area of the vertical beams 53.

FIG. 5 shows a cross-sectional view of a vertical beam 53 along the line A-A of FIG. 4. The groove/recess 56 in the vertical beam 53 is located in an inner, front corner region of the vertical beam 53. In a lower partial area of the groove/recess 56 the guide rail 10 is arranged.

FIG. 6 shows an anti-tip device in a perspective view. The guide rail 10 is designed as a hollow profile with a longitudinally extending hollow space. It comprises a left side plate 16, a right side plate 17 and a rear side 18. In the withdrawn position the support rail 20 is received in the hollow space so that a particularly compact anti-tip device 1 is achieved, wherein the support rail 20 is received completely in the outer contour of the guide rail 10. The guide rail 10 can be produced from a bent sheet metal part, an extruded aluminium profile or a rolled profile.

In an upper area of the guide rail 10 a guide area 12 is formed for guiding the sliding block 40. FIG. 7 shows a cross-sectional view of the guide area. This comprises an approximately C-shaped cross-section which is formed in that additional projections 13 are formed on a U-shaped cross-section. In the guide area 12 the guide rail 10 surrounds the sliding block 40 in such a way that the latter can be moved merely longitudinally along the guide rail 10. After the assembly of the anti-tip device a bore 11 is provided with a blind rivet or screw in order to secure the sliding block 40 against sliding out of the guide area.

Below the guide area 12 a receiving area 14 is formed. A cross-sectional view of the receiving area 14 is shown in FIG. 8. The receiving area 14 comprises a U-shaped cross-section. The omission of the projections in relation to the guide area 12 allows the support struts 30 to be received besides the support rail 20 in the receiving area 14 of the guide rail 10. The support struts 30 are then orientated parallel to the support rail 10 and to the side thereof.

The support rail 20 can be formed as a square flat steel element or laser part. The support struts 30 are connected on both sides of the support rail 20 via a double joint 32. The flat support struts 30 arranged parallel to each other are at a distance from each other so that a receiving area for receiving the support rail 20 is formed between them. Through the arrangement of the support struts 30 on both sides on the support rail 20 twisting of the support rail 20 is prevented.

The support struts 30 are furthermore hinged to the guide rail 10. Here, it can be provided that a first support strut 30 is hinged to the first side plate 16 of the guide rail 10 and a second support strut 30 to the second side plate 17 of the guide rail 10. It is, however, also possible for the two support struts 30 to be hinged via a double joint to both side plates 16, 17. It can further be advantageous to form the support struts 30 in one part, whereby a fork-like formation is then preferred. In order to fix the at least one support strut 30 to the guide rail 10 at least one joint 34 is provided. The joint 34 is arranged at a lower end of the guide rail 10.

FIG. 9 shows a partially cut side view of an anti-tip device 1. The support rail comprises an upper section 24 and a lower section 26, between which the double joint 32 is arranged. The length of the lower section 26 corresponds essentially to the length of the support strut 30 and the length of the receiving area 14 of the guide rail 10. It is hereby ensured that the lower section 26 of the support rail 20 and the support strut 30 can be integrated in the withdrawn position into the receiving area 14 of the guide rail 10.

It is further shown in the illustration that the length of the support rail 20 corresponds essentially to the length of the guide rail 10. It is hereby ensured that the support rail 20 can be received completely in the guide rail 10.

The region Y of the guide rail 10 with the sliding block 40 is shown enlarged in FIG. 10. In order to fix the sliding block 40 in the guide rail 10 the latter comprises at least one engagement bore 19 which corresponds to a corresponding bolt device of the sliding block 40. The bolt device is formed as a detent pin 45 which can be pulled out of the engagement bore 19 and pressed back to the engagement position through a spring 44. A suitable drawing aid, for example a ring 49, is arranged on the detent pin 45 for this purpose.

The detent pin 45 is displaceably arranged in a through bore 42 of the sliding block 40. The through bore 42 comprises two areas with different diameters, between which a ledge element 43 is formed. The detent pin 45 comprises a sliding area 47 and a neck area 48 with a smaller diameter. The spring 44 is arranged around the neck area 48 between the sliding area 47 of the detent pin 45 and the ledge element 43. The detent pin 45 further comprises an engagement area 46 which can be brought into engagement with the engagement bore 19.

Alternatively the detent element can also be designed as a push button system, wherein a push button is pressed by a spring into the engagement bore 19.

For the rotational mounting of the support rail 20 on the sliding block 40 the support rail 20 and sliding block 40 comprise respective bores. A pin 28 is pressed into the bore in the support rail 20 and constitutes the bearing.

FIG. 11 a shows the guide rail 10 in a front view. In order to fix the guide rail 10 to a cabinet, in particular in the groove or the recess 56 of the housing 50, a plurality of fixing bores 15 are provided on the guide rail 10. By means of these fixing bores 15 the guide rail 10 can be screwed into the groove 56. In order to fix the sliding block 40 in the support position and the withdrawn position the engagement bores 19 are formed at an upper and lower end of the guide area 12 of the guide rail 10.

The left side plate 16 is shown in FIG. 11 b in a view from the right, that is to say from the inside of the guide rail 10. The right side plate 17 is shown in FIG. 11 c in a corresponding view from the left. The bores 11 for axial securing of the sliding block are arranged at the transition between the guide area 12 and the receiving area 14.

The side plates 16, 17 have a stepped contour whereby a step separates the guide area 12 from the receiving area 14. The side plates 16, 17 thereby have a larger breadth in the guide area 12 than in the receiving area 14.

The inventive anti-tip device thus facilitates anti-tip protection for a cabinet which is easy to handle and can be arranged in a space-saving way. 

1. An anti-tip device, especially for information technology cabinets, having a support rail comprising a foot area for support on a floor surface, wherein the support rail comprises a displacement area which can be displaced along a guide rail, the support rail can be adjusted between a support position, in which the support rail is moved out at an angle to the guide rail, and a withdrawn position, in which the support rail is pivoted in towards the guide rail, and the support rail can be fixed in the support position, wherein two support struts are provided which are hinged to the guide rail and to the support rail, a receiving area for receiving the support rail is formed between the support struts, in the withdrawn position the support struts are arranged to the side of the support rail, and the displacement area of the support rail comprises a detent device for fixing the support rail on the guide rail.
 2. The anti-tip device according to claim 1, wherein the support rail is received in the withdrawn position in the guide rail.
 3. The anti-tip device according to claim 1, wherein the displacement area comprises a sliding block which is hinged to the support rail, and the sliding block is displaceably guided on the guide rail.
 4. The anti-tip device according to claim 3, wherein a detent device is provided, by means of which the sliding block can be fixed on the guide rail.
 5. The anti-tip device according to claim 1, wherein the support struts are hinged to the support rail approximately centrally between the foot area and displacement area.
 6. The anti-tip device according to claim 1, wherein the support struts have a length which corresponds essentially to half the length of the support rail.
 7. The anti-tip device according to claim 1, wherein the support struts are orientated essentially at a right angle to the guide rail in the support position.
 8. The anti-tip device according to claim 1, wherein the guide rail comprises a guide area and a receiving area, the support rail is displaceably guided in the guide area, and the receiving area is designed to receive the support struts.
 9. The anti-tip device according to claim 8, wherein the guide area has an essentially C-shaped cross-section and the receiving area has an essentially U-shaped cross-section.
 10. A cabinet, wherein an anti-tip device is arranged according to claim
 1. 11. The cabinet according to claim 10, wherein the guide rail is arranged on a vertical beam, in particular on the front side, of the cabinet.
 12. The cabinet according to claim 10, wherein the guide rail is arranged in a depression of a vertical beam of the cabinet.
 13. The cabinet according to claim 10, wherein at least two anti-tip devices are provided. 